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Dovepaw woke with a start at the sound of Rosefeather's panicked yowl. She slipped out of her nest and gave herself a quick wash before leaving the den.
Rosefeather was meowing hurriedly to Owlheart. ". . . We have to find him! He's the best warrior in the Clan! Without him how are we going to fight against MoonClan?"
Dovepaw narrowed her eyes. He must be on patrol or something. . . . Or gone, like those other nights. She began to think that she was right all along, but she needed more evidence. She limped towards the two cats. "What is going on?"
"Sparrowfeather is gone! He's not in his nest, and his scent is stale! I tried to follow it, but there's no sign of it anywhere. I don't think some cat took him away, because there's no other scent or a trail or blood . . . I don't know what happened to him!" She let out a feeble wail. "Not now, not Sparrowfeather!"
Hollypaw, Gorsepaw, and Foxpaw were coming out of their den, their eyes bleary with sleep. "What happened? I heard that Father went missing," Hollypaw meowed, her voice shaking.
Rosefeather turned her weary gaze to her daughter. "Yes. He did. I cannot follow his scent or find where he went. And he hasn't been in his nest all night!" She padded over to Hollypaw and pressed her flank into her daughter's. She licked her ear comfortingly.
Now most the Clan was slipping out of their dens to see what was happening. Owlheart hopped on top of the Snowrock and called to the Clan. "We need a search patrol! Blizzardpelt, you lead it. Dawnsplash, Whitefoot, Mousepaw, and I will go with you."
The four cats stepped forward. They looked up at Owlheart expectantly, and also a little nervously. Mousepaw glanced across the clearing at Dovepaw, her eyes showing with concern and You knew all along.
Dovepaw nodded to Mousepaw before her sister followed the patrol to search for Sparrowfeather. She hoped that they would find Sparrowfeather and find out what he was up to.
"Dovepaw! Dovepaw!" Foxpaw came dashing towards her with a frantic look in his eyes. "Dovepaw," he panted, "do you have any idea where he went? Didn't you see him that night before Frostfeather was attacked?"
Dovepaw blinked at him. "Y-yes, but I have no idea where he could have gone."
Snowtail was striding over to them with fury blazing in her green eyes. "I know where he went! Was I the only one who scented MoonClan on him? He obviously went to join MoonClan, or StarClan knows what happened to him."
The cats fell silent, staring at the feisty she-cat. "What do you mean? Do you mean he's been doing all of this for MoonClan?" Rosefeather asked, horror clear in her mew.
Snowtail whipped around to face the pretty tortoiseshell. "Yes, that's exactly what I'm saying! Hareleap, don't you remember when we heard that screech when the rainstorm came?"
